With or without you
by TheRealJasonTodd
Summary: After a mission goes wrong, Jason is injured and left in the care of Barbara Gordon. After patching him up, she decides to spend the night on his couch in case he has any problems with his wounds. But she will soon discover the boy is more damaged mentally than he is physically (Jaybabs, fluff, maybe I'll add smut later on if you guys feel up for it)
1. Chapter 1

_First things first, I want to say that I won't be getting into anything deep until chapter two. This is mainly going to be setting the scene and giving background information. If you want to skip right into the action I'll put a summary at the bottom of chapter one_

Tonight is the night.

Weeks of hunting. Stalking through the shadows like a rat. All for this one moment.

A million things could go wrong. If the guard on the roof saw him coming, the alarm would be sounded and the mission will be over before it started. If the truck was running off schedule and he missed the pickup, then this would all be for nothing. If any number of situations happen, then Jason Todd will be dead.

But he isn't nervous. There is no fear in him. Only a sense of calm. Five stories up, crouched down overlooking his target, the boy has never been better. Not a single thought is in his mind. Every motion is instinctive, primal. Not even breathing is the same. He curls his fingers, warding off frostbite.

Across the street is his target. A wooden warehouse, built right on the bank of the Gotham harbor.

Jason is silent. Watching the warehouse for hours from across the street. It was just after sunset that a plain black SUV had rolled up, license plates removed. One man had gotten out of the passenger's seat, carrying an assault rifle in one hand. He opened the main door and they pulled in. The Red Hood hadn't seen them since.

The light sound of boots on gravel. Jason looks over his shoulder, not bothering to turn his whole body. Feeling more curious than threatened. No way would any of those mob thugs have been able to spot him from up here, much less get this close without him noticing.

If it wasn't for his mask, you would have seen a toothy grin spread across his face, "Hey Babs, long time no see", barely louder than a whisper.

The Batgirl. In her usual dark purple uniform, crimson locks falling out of her hood and cascading down her shoulders.

She crosses the roof delicately, hardly making a sound. The pair kneel just inches away from each other. At first neither says a word. A silence divides them like a brick wall. Barbara stares across at the building, ignoring Jason for the moment. He's distracted for the first time this night.

Jason hadn't seen her in months. It wasn't too long ago he was resurrected. Brought back by Talia Al Ghul, sent here to kill the Batman. Long story short, the boy who once been Robin, had been turned into The Red Hood, a vicious vigilante similar to the Dark Knight in all ways except one; he never hesitated to kill. There was a brief showdown between the two, Jason versus his old mentor. It was a tough battle, but Bruce Triumphed in the end.

But that was a long time ago. After the fight, Red Hood had disappeared again. First to the Amazon Jungle, hunting down warlords and mercenaries. Then to Hong Kong where he took on the Yakuza, a powerful criminal organization. Always improving. Sharpening his skills for when he would come back to Gotham.

But there was a shadow nothing could shake off of him. He remembered the way they looked at him. Dick, Tim, Bruce. The way Barbara looked at him. Like a monster.

Not that he could really blame them. I guess trying to kill their surrogate father might have a bad impact on your relationship with someone.

So he finally returned home, but not to kill the Batman. To be honest, Jason wasn't sure why he had returned. It had been five months. Since then he has had minimal contact with those he had once called his family. And out of the blue, here's Barbara Gordon, in the flesh.

"You going to keep staring all day, wonder boy?".

His eyes flash down to the floor first, then back to the warehouse.

"You know I'm not robin anymore, Barbie", sounding almost annoyed. A small part of him was happy that she still remembered that part of his life, before he became a killer.

She punches his arm lightly, "So, what are we gonna do?"

He doesn't look at her, "There's around a dozen guys in there. Two patrolling the roof, a couple more watching the inside. There's two or three bosses in there. It's some kind of meeting between two of the smaller crime families".

She takes a moment to think this over, "So…how you back me up?"

He lets out a grunt. If you were to use your imagination, you might just be able to hear it as a laugh.

"I scouted it out, that means you're backing _me_ up."

She runs off, practically floating.

"But", she says, "I'm the better fighter, which makes you my sidekick!."

Jason climbs up on the ledge, facing the warehouse. Two stories high, with plenty of windows. A very large place for so few men to guard. He almost let himself question why they had chosen this place to meet in the first place.

"You sure about that Barbie? It's been a while since you've seen me fight, for all we know I could put you on your ass."

He fires a grappling hook, and Barbara does the same.

The pair stand on the ledge together, grins on both their faces. For a moment, it was as if the last couple years had never happened. As if he was still robin, and this was just another night on patrol.

"In your dreams-", she starts.

"Oh trust me Babs", Jason cuts her off, "You're doing much more than _that_ in my dreams!"

Before she can respond, he's off, flying through the air toward the building.

The Goon never stood a chance. One minute it's a regular night on watch, nothing more than patrolling the catwalk overlooking the main warehouse. Then something comes flying through the window, faster than he can see. Two boots make contact dead center of his chest, sending the thug hurtling through the air over the railing, tumbling down onto the first floor. Before any of the grunts could get a lock on his position, Jason throws two cans of smoke, hiding him. The one man left on the catwalk fires blindly into the darkness. Between the dim lighting and the smoke, The Red Hood became a ghost.

"Anyone see 'em?" shouts one of the men from down below.

Just seconds after he hears a scream that can be heard from all the way down the block.

"Second level is clear, where the hell are you?" shouts Jason into the radio.

"Chill out, I'm coming"

The three thugs aim in the correct general direction. They get back to back to avoid getting attacked from behind.

Then Batgirl came crashing through the skylight, landing right on top of them. Within seconds the three are all knocked out, laying in a heap on the floor.

"Alright", groans Jason, "I think we're clear".

The pair walk together, checking out what the goons left behind.

They come across a man, tied up and with a bag over his head. He looks unconscious, head slumped.

"I'll get him untied, you go look outside to see if they left anything".

Barbara doesn't need to say anything. She walks off, taking her time.

Jason had to admit, it was nice working with someone else again. Having someone to watch your back.

He pulls the bag off of the man's head.

His face is painted. White as bone. Blood red lipstick has been smeared across his mouth. Green circles around his eyes and a pair of yellow stars on his cheeks.

That's when Jason hears the faint, _Tic-tick, tic-tick, tic-tick…_

"Barbara, get the hell out!", he shouts, sprinting as hard as he can for the exit. The door is too far but he can see a boarded up window. Jason's feet pound against the concrete, giving every ounce of energy. He lunges head first at the wood. The thing panel breaks easily under his force, at the same exact moment the bomb explodes behind him. Jason is throw out the window, flames licking at his legs.

He slams into the dirt, facedown. Unconscious, smoke curling off his body.

Summary: _Jason has discovered a warehouse that is being used by some local gangsters. Batgirl and Red Hood team up and raid the place, easily taking down the handful of guards that are inside. It turns out to be a trap set by the joker. A bomb injures Jason, but leaves Barbara relatively unharmed._


	2. Chapter 2

For the second time in his life, Jason Todd had been blown up in a warehouse. Which is two more times than he thought he would be.

He tries sitting up, coughing and choking within his helmet.

"Take it easy, we made it out." unmistakably the voice of Barbara.

"Oh, I survived", he groans, "I love when I do that".

He glances her over as best he can. His voice is ragged still struggling to overcome the damage of the blast, "Shit, you're not hurt, are you?"

"Jason Todd, I am going to kill you." And the two shared a laugh unlike anything either of them had felt in forever.

The two are on a rooftop several blocks away from where the bomb had gone off. Barbara had been able to get Jason out of there before the cops had arrived. They have a perfect view now of the smoke rising over the horizon, the lights of cop cars flashing in the streets below.

"I'm fine, Babs…never…better…", He struggles to get to his feet.

First falling on all fours, bowing over as if he was going to throw up. Perilously, one foot after another, he stands up as straight as possible. Hunched over like a drunk, swaying slightly.

Barbara forces him to lean on her, "C'mon tough guy, let's go get you patched up."

The pair stumble off into the night.

"You got burned pretty badly across your back. Some minor cuts too, but those shouldn't be a problem".

Sitting on his own kitchen table, a bottle of whiskey in one hand. Barbara stood behind him, examining the damage.

It wasn't like what she would have expected. Its only two rooms, a mix of a kitchen and living room and a small bedroom off to the side. There's hardly any furniture in here except for a couch and a TV. Dimly lit, with the blinds drawn and the lights off.

Jason isn't as she expected either. He's covered in scars and burns, more than she would have ever guessed. It had never occurred to her how he had lived since leaving Wayne manor all those years ago.

"My left arm still hurts", he says.

She puts both hands on his arm. One gripping the shoulder and the holding on tight to his bicep.

"It's dislocated. I can't leave you alone for five seconds before you go and get yourself busted up", she whines.

"You can fix it, right?"

"Of course."

"It's gonna hurt like a bitch, isn't it?"

"Of course"

He takes a swig of whiskey and shuts his eyes tight. She jerks his arm, hard and fast. There's a _pop_ from his elbow, and a grunt escapes his mouth.

"Are we done now?" He gasps, lying face down on the table.

Barbara had already stitched him up, and did what she could with the burns.

"Yeah, we're done."

He climbs off the table and walks over to the bedroom.

"You mind if I crash on your couch? It's pretty late already, and I want to keep an eye on you in case the stitches bother you", she says.

Jason doesn't bother turning around, just grunts before shutting the door behind him.

He returns a minute later with a blanket and pillow.

"Oh yeah", he tosses her a simple black T-shirt, "I figured if you don't have anything else to wear…"

It's way too big for her, going down to her thighs. She laughs, glancing him up and down. Only a pair of sweatpants, leaving his upper body bare. She could just barely make out the bat symbols that were imprinted on his chest. One right over his heart, the size of a handprint. A few shades lighter than the skin surrounding it, protruding ever so slightly. The work of the joker.

She puts on her best southern drawl, "Why're you so sweet on me, Clarence?"

But he just looks confused. Well, more confused than usual.

"It's a wonderful life?" she questions.

"What are you talking about?"

"Jesus Christ, it's a classic! Would it kill you to watch something more cultured than The Simpsons?" She whines.

Jason turns away from her. She can see a grin growing across his face.

Just before he closes his bedroom door, Barbara calls out one last time.

"Hey…Jason?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm really glad you didn't die tonight."

Then he closes the door, shutting himself away from her.

Barbara isn't sure why she woke up. The sky is still dark, hidden behind the closed blinds.

She had spent an hour or so watching reruns of Fresh Prince before she fell asleep. She stretches, cracking her back. Wandering around the small apartment. This was the first time she had been in here. Hell, it was the first time anyone from the Bat family had been in here.

There's no pictures anywhere. Why would there be? Jason has no family. Both parents died during childhood, later to be disowned by Bruce Wayne. Barbara had thought Jason would have at least made friends or gotten a girlfriend.

 _Someone._

She couldn't imagine living on her own. He was loyal to no one.

That's when she first heard the cries.

Barbara's first instinct to grab the kitchen knife. It was coming from Jason's bedroom. She sprints across the room, leaping clear over the couch. She swings the door open and…nobody.

Only Jason, in the middle of the bed. Something is wrong with him.

A low moan escapes his lips, a little more than a whimper. Face contorted, in pain. Grabbing at the bedsheets, chest rising and falling.

She drops the knife. Slowly, Barbara crosses the distance to the bed.

He's covered in sweat.

Now she can make out his words, "N-no…nonononono…pl-please no, no more…".

It was too much for her to watch. Barbara grabs him by both shoulders, shaking him just a little harder than she should.

She says as softly as she can manage, "Jason. Jason, come on, you gotta wake up."

Slowly, he's pulled out of whatever hell his mind had mustered, and he comes back to her.

His eyes open, stare directly into hers. Barbara is on the bed now, straddling him. Their faces inches apart. For a moment, she sees it.

The fear in eyes.

And Jason in return can see the worry in her eyes.

A weak grin breaks through, and he whispers, "When I pictured the two of us thrashing around in bed, this was not what I had in mind."

She pulls him tight, making him pulling up to her. She squeezes him close, and for the first time in his life he's at a loss of words.

"Oh god. Jason…" It's a whisper, shared only between the two of them.

He can't remember how long they stayed like that, in each other's arms. Later when he would think back to that moment, it seems like forever.

Just the two of them. No Joker, no Batman, no Gotham. Only his heart and hers, beating together.


End file.
